The Fool Who Would Be Holy > Articles by: Ian Johnson
Author Archive: Ian Johnson
Ian Johnson
December 18, 2020
This page contains a top-level outline of a long series of posts that will show how errors and divisions that crept into Christianity before Muhammad influenced Muhammad either positively–leading to the his adoption of exaggerated forms of these errors–or negatively– leading to exaggerated reactions against them. Islamic versions of these errors or reactive teachings then influenced Medieval Christianity. The combination of the original errors and Islamic influences then combined with European politics to lead to the Crusades, the Reformation and its wars, and the modern West and Western Church as we know them.
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Church History, Islamic History and Secular History Interaction, Denominationalism, Index, Islam and Christianity, Islam as a Consequence, Religious violence and persecution, Topic Index, Wars as consequences
Christian history, Christianity, Church History, History of Christianity, Islam, Islamic History, Secular History, Western History
Ian Johnson
December 17, 2020
This outline links to posts that contain my 2020 revision of the chapters I wrote in Ian Johnson & Lauston Stephens, Our Oneness in Christ (Baltimore: Publish America 2006) (only the Amazon Kindle edition is still available). Chapters 2, 7 through 10, 15 and 16 were written by Mr. Stephens, and were important to the overall meaning of the book. However, they are his work, and I will not be attempting to rewrite them on this blog. I would invite the reader to find them in the Kindle book—or in a now quite rare print copy.
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Ian Johnson
December 16, 2020
This is a preliminary outline of the entire contents I would like, God willing, to write about. I will gradually be adding links to the nested subject outlines to which the links on this overall outline page point. I will then fill in links found in the nested outlines as pages are completed. (Many pages have already been completed, but finishing the whole outline will likely take a years!) Be watching for any new material that interests you.
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Ian Johnson
December 10, 2020
For unity to be seen in the Church, there must be submission—first submission to Christ as Head of the Church, then mutual submission to each other. A part of this necessary submission is to submit to those God has placed in leadership in the Church. But submission to leadership must come after submission to Christ, and be an aspect of mutual submission to each other. Much division has been caused by leaders who have insisted that they, and other human leaders, should be “in command” of the church. Only Christ is rightfully in command.
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A God who Speaks, Authority Contests, Divisions in the Church, God Speaks to Us, Heresy, In the Church, Meaning of Unity, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Peril of Seeking Power, The universal Church and local churches, Through others, Through the church, Uncategorized
chain of command, church government, Church unity, leaders, leadership, mutual submission, submission, Unity, Unity of believers
Ian Johnson
December 7, 2020
To commit the “Scarecrow Fallacy,” which I have named after the Scarecrow character in the 1939 movie the Wizard of Oz, is to mistake a diploma for knowledge or a credential for God’s calling. God usually makes use of available formal education, and often acts through the organized Church’s mechanisms of licensure and ordination, but has never bound himself always to do so. It is possible to have a very powerful calling from God with no formal human recognition, and also, unfortunately too common to have excellent ministry credentials and no relationship with Jesus whatsoever.
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A God who Speaks, God Speaks to Us, Heresy, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Peril of Seeking Power, Prophecy, Social control and statecraft, The universal Church and local churches, Through others, Through the church, Uncategorized
been with Jesus, being with Jesus, Christian education, credential, credentialing, degree, diploma, education, fallacy, formal education, licensure, opinions of others, Scarecrow, Wizard of Oz
Ian Johnson
December 5, 2020
Teachers are given to the Church to teach and explain the Word of God and to model and transmit the relationship with God they are teaching. Teaching as a gift of the Holy Spirit may also be given to people who are not permanently given to the Church as teachers, and may be given to people on specific occasions. Ephesians 4:11 “teachers” are not the same thing as “pastors.”
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A God who Speaks, God Speaks to Us, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Through others, Through the church
authority, authority figures, authority in the Church, gifts of the Holy Spirit, Spiritual Gifts, Teacher, teaching
Ian Johnson
December 3, 2020
Pastors are shepherds of flocks of people. Their main function is to guide, guard, tend, and care for the needs of their flock, not to command it. They should not be expected to exercise all of the gifts of the Spirit, to be competent to do every job in the Church, or to do the whole “work of the ministry” in place of the members of their flock.
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Ian Johnson
December 1, 2020
Evangelists, as people given by Christ to the Church, are primarily trainers in evangelism, sent to show the rest of us how to introduce others to a friendship with Jesus. They are not sent to do the work by themselves! But, because of our Western focus on paid “ministers” and on attendance at church “events,” true evangelists tend to be unrecognized and unappreciated.
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A God who Speaks, God Speaks to Us, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Purpose of the Church, Through the church
Ephesians 4:11, Evangelist, evangelists, gifts of the Holy Spirit, Gifts to the Church, trainers in evangelism
Ian Johnson
November 29, 2020
Prophets tell forth God’s words to an individual, church or situation, giving God’s perspective which is not plainly visible without God’s illumination. The purpose of prophecy is to edify the Church. Prediction of the future is not the essence of prophecy. Many great preachers were likely prophets, though not recognized as such. This function is still important to the Body, and therefore still present in it.
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A God who Speaks, God Acts by Speaking, God Speaks to Us, God's purpose for us, God's Voice, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Prophecy, Through the church, To be his ambassadors, What is God's Word
correction, encouragement, guidance, illumination, Prophecy, Prophet, Prophets, Speak forth, Speaking Forth, warning
Ian Johnson
November 27, 2020
The distinguishing mark of the apostle is the apostolic functions of starting new works, of guiding resolution of conflicts, and of ordaining and directing organization in the Body. Since these functions are still needed, it follows God still gives the church people gifted for these functions, whether we call them apostles or not.
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A God who Speaks, God Speaks to Us, In the Church, Meaning of Unity, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Purpose of the Church, The universal Church and local churches, Through others, Through the church, What is God's Word
Apostle, Apostles, authority, authority figures, authority in the Church, Gifts to the Church
